Gun rights lawsuits

Court status of 9 challenges to city, state and county rules

Gun rights advocates are pursuing at least nine lawsuits against Chicago, Cook County and Illinois in an attempt to loosen some of the most restrictive gun laws in the country.

Rhonda Ezell v. City of Chicago

Originally, the federal lawsuit challenged Chicago's ban on shooting ranges. In July, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed an order from a district court that had refused to overturn the ban. In response, the City Council amended its ordinance to allow gun ranges to exist under specific guidelines. Gun advocates are challenging those guidelines in U.S. District Court.

Illinois Association of Firearms Retailers v. City of Chicago

A federal lawsuit challenging the city's ban on the sale of firearms. It also addresses restrictions in the ordinance that prohibit people from having guns in their yards, garages or on their front porches, and the requirement that a license holder keep only one "assembled and operable" firearm in the home. The case is pending in U.S. District Court.

Second Amendment Arms v. City of Chicago

Challenges Chicago's ban on weapons dealers and gun stores as well as the ban on firearm transfers. It also seeks to clear all convictions before the 2010 Supreme Court ruling. The case is pending in U.S. District Court.

Shawn Gowder v. City of Chicago

A federal lawsuit claiming Gowder's constitutional right to bear arms was violated when he was denied a Chicago firearm permit because of a 1995 misdemeanor conviction for possessing a firearm on a public street. The case is pending in U.S. District Court.

John Bowley v. City of Chicago

Bowley sued the city in state court after he was denied a firearm permit because of a conviction in Ohio related to the illegal transport of a firearm in a car. In February, an Illinois Circuit Court judge ruled that the prior conviction does not disqualify an individual from receiving a permit. The city is deciding whether to appeal the ruling.

Michael Moore v. Lisa Madigan, et al.

Moore, the Second Amendment Foundation and IllinoisCarry.com sued to overturn the state ban on carrying concealed weapons in public. In January, a U.S. District Court judge granted the state's motion to dismiss the lawsuit. The plaintiffs have appealed to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Shepard sued to overturn the state ban on carrying concealed weapons in public. That case is pending in U.S. District Court.

Illinois v. Alberto Aguilar

In a bench trial, Aguilar was found guilty of one count of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon for carrying a loaded firearm in the backyard of a friend's home. The lawsuit claims the statute under which he was convicted is unconstitutional. The trial court and the 1st District Court of Appeals affirmed the statute. Aguilar appealed the case to the Illinois Supreme Court, where it is pending.

Matthew D. Wilson v. Cook County

The federal lawsuit challenges the county assault weapon ban, claiming that of the firearms banned, only a few are fully automatic and therefore regulated under federal law. The rest, the suit contends, are semiautomatic firearms and are not assault weapons. The case is awaiting a ruling by the Illinois Supreme Court.